money?”
“Man. Definitely all man… Whew.” Yasmine fanned her face with her hand.
“Awww, shit! So you’ve met your first ex-husband.”
“Girl, stop!” Yasmine smiled. “You are so silly. Look, I know you will hate me for this, and even as close as we are, I am not sure I want to go into all the particulars. I… I may not be ready to discuss it yet.”
Goldie seemed to contemplate what was being said, pondering whether she should force the issue or let the shit go.
“All right,” she finally said. “You seem a little confused, despite stating you’re happy.”
“Honestly, Goldie? I am a little confused. That’s the damn truth right there. I have met someone in a very unconventional way, and he’s totally thrown me for a loop.”
“Fine, tell me about him. As much as you’re comfortable sharing, of course.” Much to Yasmine’s surprise, she didn’t push the issue. In fact, she gave her space to work out her thoughts and feelings. All the sticky emotions she was dealing with.
“Well, he’s an attorney. An accomplished one.”
“All right, all right. Starting off on the right foot.” Goldie nodded in approval.
“From a physical standpoint, he’s really attractive. He is the kind of guy who gets a lot of attention from his looks alone. He stands out in a crowd. It’s not even so much because of his appearance, Goldie, but the way he carries himself. He reeks of confidence. You can just look at him and tell he doesn’t give a shit. It’s amazing, really.”
“I like that… yeah.” Goldie bit her lower lip and her eyes hooded as if she, too, would be dating him. “He sounds like a winner. Back to his looks though, circle back… Give me more details so I can get a visual on this guy.”
“Oh yeah, of course. Quite tall, very well built. Black hair, beautiful hair, and his eyes… these blue eyes of his are amazing… a shade that is so unusual, almost navy but not quite as dark.”
Goldie ran her tongue along her upper teeth and made a sucking sound.
“Yummy. He sounds quite handsome. I take it with those eyes he isn’t a BMW?”
Yasmine shook her head, amused. “Nope. He’s not a Black man working. He’s, uh, Italian-American… with a little Greek.”
Goldie rolled her eyes and gave a light, airy laugh. “That’s all you need to say. End of story.” The woman waved her off and partook in more wine.
“What?!” Yasmine smirked and followed suit. Both placed their glasses back on the coasters. “You had a bad run-in with an Italian guy or something?”
“You’re dealing with a guy who probably thinks he is the shit! Is he from here?”
“Yeah, born and raised.”
“Oh, hell! A Chicago Italian dude, too? Yasmine, them and the New York ones are a complete, utter macho mess. Bravado, machismo for days. Pumped up and out of control. Ya can’t tell them shit.” Goldie laughed so damn hard, her cheeks turned ruddy.
“Oh, come on! That’s a stereotype!” Yasmine quipped, though she knew damn well that in Nixon’s case, every word Goldie was saying fit the bill. The shit was true.
“It may be, but it holds water. They have that whole swag thing, like some of the Black guys we’re accustomed to. It comes to them naturally. I mean, it’s part of their culture. I know they can’t be all pigeonholed like that. We hate it when other people do that to us.” Goldie seemed to backtrack a bit, maybe feeling as if she should be more politically correct. “But they can be a handful. And if their mothers don’t like you, you’re screwed.” So much for backtracking. “Hold up. You know what’s strange?”
“The fact you owe me a hundred bucks from that bet you lost two months ago and still haven’t paid up?”
They both burst out laughing.
“No. You and I have never really talked about dating men of other races. That’s crazy to me!” The woman tapped a finger on her chin.
“What’s strange? That we’ve never discussed it or that maybe we assumed we both have or haven’t?”
“Actually, both.” For a few moments, they sat mulling that thought. “I know you’re attracted to non-Black men because you and I have discussed certain actors and singers we think are hot, and though most of the men we mention are Black, we’ve taken the discussion beyond that.”
“I guess you’re right…” She took another sip of wine.
“Why do you seem green to me?” Goldie smirked.
“Green?!”
“Yeah, new to this. Have you ever dated a man who isn’t Black before